Male infertility crisis

The male infertility crisis is a term used by the popular media to describe the rapid decrease in sperm quality, and consequential problems with male infertility, seen over the 40 year period starting in the late 1970s.[1] Over that time period, the number of viable sperm in men in Australia, Europe, New Zealand snd North America has roughly halved, falling at a rate of 1.4% per year.[2][3] This reduction has not been seen in other parts of the world.[4] A number of hypotheses have been put forward for the causes of the decline, including lifestyle factors and the presence of hormone-disrupting chemicals in the environment.[4]

Mass media coverage

The phenomenon has been the subject of study for some years, starting with a 1992 paper by Skakkebaek et al.[5][6] A meta-analysis by Levine et. al. published in 2017 confirmed Skakkebaek's earlier results,[5][7] leading to considerable coverage in the mass media, characterizing the reduction in sperm quality as a "male [in]fertility crisis",[1][8][9] with some comparing its possible long term effects with the fertility collapse in dystopian fictional works such as Children of Men and The Handmaid’s Tale.[1][10]

References

  1. 1 2 3 McKie, Robin (2017-07-29). "The infertility crisis is beyond doubt. Now scientists must find the cause". The Guardian. Retrieved 2018-10-10.
  2. ↑ Levine, Hagai; Jørgensen, Niels; Martino-Andrade, Anderson; Mendiola, Jaime; Weksler-Derri, Dan; Mindlis, Irina; Pinotti, Rachel; Swan, Shanna H (2017-07-25). "Temporal trends in sperm count: a systematic review and meta-regression analysis". Human Reproduction Update. 23 (6): 646–659. doi:10.1093/humupd/dmx022. ISSN 1355-4786. PMID 28981654.
  3. ↑ Davis, Nicola (2017-07-25). "Sperm counts among western men have halved in last 40 years – study". The Guardian. Retrieved 2018-10-10.
  4. 1 2 Johnston, Ian (25 July 2017). "Western men's sperm counts plunge 60% in 40 years due to 'modern life'". The Independent. Retrieved 2018-10-10.
  5. 1 2 Walsh, Bryan (2017-09-12). "The male infertility crisis: Who's killing America's sperm?". Newsweek. Retrieved 2018-10-10.
  6. ↑ Carlsen, E.; Giwercman, A.; Keiding, N.; Skakkebaek, N. E. (1992-09-12). "Evidence for decreasing quality of semen during past 50 years". BMJ (Clinical Research Ed.). 305 (6854): 609–613. ISSN 0959-8138. PMC 1883354. PMID 1393072.
  7. ↑ Levine, Hagai; Jørgensen, Niels; Martino-Andrade, Anderson; Mendiola, Jaime; Weksler-Derri, Dan; Mindlis, Irina; Pinotti, Rachel; Swan, Shanna H. (1 November 2017). "Temporal trends in sperm count: a systematic review and meta-regression analysis". Human Reproduction Update. 23 (6): 646–659. doi:10.1093/humupd/dmx022. ISSN 1460-2369. PMID 28981654.
  8. ↑ Kehoe, Lucy (2018). "The male fertility crisis: six things that are harming your sperm count". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2018-10-10.
  9. ↑ Inhorn, Marcia C. (October 21, 2017). "Opinion | A Male Infertility Crisis Is Coming. The Middle East Can Help". The New York Times. Retrieved 2018-10-10.
  10. ↑ "Why the male infertility crisis could be good news for women". New Scientist. Retrieved 2018-10-10.

See also


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